Refrigeration



Nov. 27;-1945. N, ERLAND AF KLEEN 2,389,968

REFRIGERATION Original Filed Oct. 3, 1941 2 Sheet'sSheet l (ZZV/zy?. BY K/@ly Nov. -27, 1945. Y I N. ERLAND AF KLEEN v 2,389,968

REFRIGERATION Original Filed Oct. 3, 1941 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 1:: INVENTOR.

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llzatenteci Nov. 27, 1945 assises narnrcsaarron Nils Erland at Kleen, Stockholm, Sweden, assignorto Kleen Refrigerator, Inc., Hoboken, N. J., a corporation of Delaware Original application October 3, 1941, Serial No. 413,441. Divided and this application April 24, 1943. Serial No. 484,377

7 Claims.

This invention relates to new and useful improvements in refrigeration and is directed more particularly to an evaporator construction formed with a plurality of vcooling parts having alternate cooling and inactive periods, the present application being a division of my co-pending application, ser. No. 413,441, filed October 3, 1941.

One of the primary objects of the present invention is to improve the eiliciency of an evaporator construction of the type above mentioned by providing a number of air channels or spaces in the evaporator each of said air spaces being formed between a separate pair of cooling parts, each of the cooling parts of each pair producing refrigeration intermittently but in out of phase relationship with respect to one another and with the cooling parts of one of said pairs each being thermally connected to a separate one of the cooling parts of a separate one of the other parts.

With the above and other objects in View which Awill appear as the description proceeds, my inventionresides in the novel features hereinafter more fully set forth, illustrated by way of example in the accompanying drawings and more particularly pointed out in the appended claims.

Referring to the drawings in which numerals of like character designate similar parts throughout the several views- Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic view of refrlgerating apparatus including an evaporator construction. shown in front elevation hav-ing a plurality of cooling parts and with such cooling parts arranged in accordance with the present invention;

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the evaporator construction of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a View in elevation looking from the back of the evaporator construction, and

Fig. 4 is a diagrammatic view of the two groups of coils forming the cooling parts of the evaporator construction.

In the drawings, referring more particularly to Fig. l, a refrigerator cabinet Ill is shown partly broken away and in section to illustrate the thermally insulated storage space I I in which is arranged my improved evaporator construction including a pair of ice-freezing or sharp freezing compartments I2 and I3 and a plurality oiv vertical cooling coils divided into two groups. One

group comprises cooling coils. I4, I5, it and ill' connected at one end to the bottom of a down pipe I 8 leading from the bottomof a thermally insulated vessel I9 disposed in the upper portion of the cabinet Hl, and the other group including coils Ma, Ia, loa and Ila similarly connected to the bottom of a down pipe I8a.leading from the bottom of another thermally insulated vessel I9a adjacent the first-mentioned vessel I9. The other end of each coil in each group terminates in communication with the associated vessel adjacent the upper portion of the latter.

The compartments I2 and I3 are arranged side by side in spaced relation to one another to provide an air space or channel therebetween and each compartment has a separate pair of cooling coils thermally bonded to its heat conducting walls. In the arrangement shown, coils I4 and Ma are employed for the compartment I2 and are arranged respectively on the left and right sides thereof, and coils I5 and I5a are employed for the compartment I3 and are arranged respectively on the left and right sides thereof. Thus each compartment has a separate pair of cooling i coils arranged to produce refrigeration in direct thermal transfer relation thereto, each pair comprising a cooling coil of one group and a cooling coil of the other group. Moreover, as the air space or channel 20 is formed between coils Ila and I5, the air in said channel will be cooled by a coil of one group and a coil of the other group.

Cooling coil IBa of one group is arranged in spaced relation to cooling coil I4 of the other Vgroup to provide a vertical air channel 2i along the left side of compartment I2 for circulating air in the storage space Ill. Similarly, cooling coil I6 of the other group is arranged in spaced relation to cooling coil Iia of the rst group to provide a similar air channel 22 along the right side of compartment I3. Consequently, each of the air channels 2t and 22 is formed between a cooling coil of one group and a cooling coil of the other group producing refrigeration in indirect thermal transfer relationship with respect to one another but with one of the cooling coils of each channel valso producing refrigeration in direct thermal transfer relation to the associated one of the compartments I2 and I3.

In order to present relatively large heattrans- I adjacent the rear oi the comments It and I3 and in. indirect thermal transfer relation thereto, the cooling coil Il or one group and the corresponding cooling coil lia of the other group V are arranged in indirect thermal transfer relation to each other to provide an air channel 25 (Fig, 2), each' of said coils being provided with a vertical plate 26 and 28a, respectively, formed with laterally extending fins 21 and 21a, respectively, to present relatively large heat transfer ring surfaces for the air circulating in the channel 25. Thus, each of the channels 20, 2|, 22 and 25 is formed between a pair of cooling coils, each pair comprising a cooling coil of one group and a cooling coll of the other group.

'I'he vessels IS and Isa are supplied with refrigerant liquid alternately from any suitable source or sources for operation of the respective groups of cooling coils on alternate cooling and inactive periods and in out of phase relation to one another for the provision of substantially continuous refrigeration. 1

In Fig. 1,1 have shown for illustrative purposes vessel I9 and associated group of cooling coils Il,

l5, I6 and II-as forming parts of an intermittent type absorption refrigeratingsystem A having alternate generation and absorbing periods and including the usual boiler-absorber 28 and condenser 29, and vessel lia and associated group of cooling coils Ila, Ia, Ita and Ila as forming parts of a similar refrigerating system B including boiler-absorber 28a and condenser 29asaid systems operating in out of phase relation to each other so that when one system is generating and refrigerant liquid is delivered to its'associated vessel and group of cooling coilsl the other system is absorbing and refrigerant liquid is evaporated in its associated group of cooling coils to produce refrigeration. The heat necessary to liberate the refrigerant from the absorbent during the generating periods' of each of the systems A and B is supplied by any suitable means such as the burners 30 and 30a, respectivelyi It will thus be seen from the foregoing construction of the evaporator and arrangement ofV the diil'erent cooling coils that each of the compartments i2 and i3 will be directly cooled by 'a separate pair of cooling coils each pair comprising a cooling coil of one group and a cooling coil of the other group producing refrigeration intermittently but in out of phase relation to one another and arranged in thermal contact with the heat conducting walls of the respective compartment on opposite sides of the latter so that each compartment and associated pair of cooling coils form a separate low temperature cooling unit suitable for ice-freezing or for maintaining sharp freezing conditions. Moreover, each' of said compartments will also be indirectly cooled along the sides and back thereof through the medium of air in separate channels, each channel formed between a separate pair of cooling coils, each pair comprising a cooling coil of one group and a cooling coil of the other group arrangedin. spaced parallel relation and producing refrigeration intermittently but in out of phaserelation to one another. e

In one of the' slr channels. namely. channel zo, the air is cooled by a pair of coils each of which is arranged in thermal contact with a respective low temperature compartment. in another one or more of the airl channels, namely.. channels 2i .and 22, the air in each` channel is cooled by a separate pair of coils one of which coils in each pair is arranged in thermal contact with a respective low temperature compartment and the other of which coils in each pair is arranged out of thermal contact with respect to either of the low temperature compartments, and in still another one of the air channels, namely, channel 25, the air is cooled by a pair of coils eachv of which is arranged out of thermal contact with respect to either of the low temeprature compartments.

It will also be observed that as certain cooling coils of each of the two groups, namely, cooling coils I6 and I1 of one group and corresponding cooling coils Ita and ila of the other group, are arranged out of thermal contact with respect to one another and to the freezing coils Il, ila, l5 and lia, and are employed to cool the air in the main storage space of the cabinet to maintain a temperature above freezing in the latter, each of said air cooling coils will become coated with frost during its refrigeration producing periods and will become automatically defrosted during its inactive periods so that a relatively high humidity will be maintained in said storage space.

From the foregoing it is believed that the construction and advantages of my invention will be readily understood by those skilled inl the art without further description, it being borne in mind that numerous changes may be made in the details disclosed without departing from the spirit of the invention as set forth in the following claims:

What I claim is:

l. A refrigerator comprising a cabinet having a plurality of compartments to be c'ooled including two arranged side by side and adapted to be cooled to relatively low temperatures and another one adapted to be cooled to a relatively high temperature; and refrigeratingapparatus including a plurality of cooling elements having alternate cooling and inactive periods and arranged in pairs including one pair disposed between said two ilrst named compartments with one of the cooling elements of said pair in thermal contact with one and the other one of the cooling elements of said pair in thermal contact with the other one of said compartments, a lisecond pair disposed on another side of one of said two first named compartments with one of the cooling elements of said pair in thermal contact and the other one ofthe cooling elements out of thermal vcontact with said compartment to provide a cooling channel for the air in said relatively high temperature compartment, a third pair disposed on another side of the other one of said two first named compartments with one of the cooling elements of said pairin thermal contact and the other one of the cooling elements of said pair out of thermal contact with said compartment to provide another cooling vchannel for the `air in said relatively high temperature compartment, and means for operating one of the cooling elements of each of saidpairs as a group'and the other one of the cooling elements of each of said pairs as' another group.

2. A refrigerator as claimed in claim l includ- 'partments arranged side by side and a thermally insulated storage space; and refrigerating apparatus for cooling said compartments and storage space including a plurality of evaporator parts having alternate cooling and inactive periods and arranged in pairs including one pair disposed between said low temperature compartments with one of said evaporator parts thermally bonded to one of said compartments and the other one of' said evaporator parts thermally bonded to the other one of said compartments, a second pair disposed on another side of one of saidA compartments with one of said evaporator parts thermally bondedv to said compartment and the other one of said evaporator parts ,out of thermal contact with respect to said compartment and spaced outwardlythereirom` to provide 9, cooling channel for the air in said storage space, a third pair disposed on another side of the other one of said compartments with one of said evaporator parts thermally bonded to said compartment and the other one of said evaporator parts out of thermal contact with respect to said compartment and spaced outwardly therefrom to provide another cooling channel for the air in said storage space, and means including a conduit connected to deliver refrigerant liquid intermittently to one of the evaporator parts of each of said pairs for operation as a group and another conduit connected to deliver refrigerant liquid intermittently to the other one of the evaporator parts of each of said pairs for operation as another group.

4. A refrigerator comprising. in combination, a cabinet having a pair of low temperature compartments arranged side by side and a thermally insulated storage space; and refrigerating appa-- ratus for cooling said compartments and storage space including a plurality of evaporator parts arranged in pairs including one pair disposed loe-- tween said low temperature compartments with one of said evaporator parts thermally bonded to one of said compartments and the other one of said evaporator parts thermally bonded to the other one of said compartments, a second pair disposed on another side of one of said compartments with one of said evaporator parts thermally bonded to said compartment and the other one of said evaporator parts out of thermal contact with respect to said compartment and spaced outwardly therefrom to provide a cooling channel for theair in said storage space, a third pair disposed on another side of the other one of said compartments with onev of said evaporator parts thermally bonded to said compartment and the other one of said evaporator parts out of thermal contact with respect to said compartment and spaced outwardly therefrom to provide another cooling channel for the air in said storage space, and means including a. thermally insulated vessel constructed and arranged alternately to supply refrigerant liquid to and withdraw refrigerant vapor from one of the evaporator parts of each of said pairs for operation as a. group and another thermally insulated vessel constructed and arranged alternately to supply refrigerant liquid to and withdraw refrigerant vapor from the other one of the evaporator partsof each of said pairs for operation as another group.

5. A refrigerator comprising, in combination, a cabinet having a thermallyl insulated storage space and a plurality of compartments including two arranged side by side and in heat exchange relation with the air in said storage space: and refrigerados apparatus :or cooling said compartments ond storage space including a plurality of evaporator parts arranged in pairs including one pair disposed between said two-named compartments with one of said evaporator parts thermally bonded to one of said compartments and the other one of said evaporator parts thermally bonded to the other one of said compartment-s, a second pair disposed on a side of one of said com'- partments opposite to said iirst pair and with one of said evaporator parts thermally bonded to said compartment and the other one of said evaporator parts out of thermal contact with respect to said compartment and spaced outwardly therefrom "to provide a cooling channelfor circulating air in said storage space, a third pair disposed on a side of the other one of said compartments opposite to said first pair and with one ofsaid evaporator parts thermally bonded to said compartment and the oth'er one of saidv evaporator parts out of thermal contact with respect to said compartment and spaced outwardly therefrom to provide another cooling channel for circulating air in said storage space. and means constructed and arranged to operate one of the evaporator parts of each of said pairs as a group on alternate cooling and inactive periods and the other one of the evaporator parts of each of said pairs as another group on alternate cooling and inactive periods.

l 6. A refrigerator comprising, in combination,` a cabinet having a thermally insulated storage space land a pair of low temperature compartments arranged side by side in said storage space; and refrigerating apparatus .for cooling said compartments and storage space comprising a pair of intermittent absorption refrigerating systems each having a plurality of evaporator parts, one of the' evaporator parts of each of said systems being arranged between said low temperature compartments with the evaporator part of one of said systems thermally bonded toA one of said compartmentsand the evaporator part of the other system thermally bonded tothe other one of said compartments, another evaporator part of each of said systems being arranged on the opposite side of said first-named compartment with the evaporator part of said second system thermally bonded to said one compartment and the evaporator part of said first system out of thermal contact with respect to said one compartment and spaced outwardly therefrom to provide a cooling channel for the air in said storage space, and a third evaporator part of each of said systems being arranged on the opposite side of said second-named compartment 55 with theevaporator part of said first system thermally bonded to said compartment and the evaporator part of said second-named system out of thermal contact with respect to said secondnamed compartment and spaced outwardly there- 60 from to provide another cooling channel for the 65 speci; to either of said compartments to cool the air in said storage space. y 1

NILS ERLAND or KLEEN. 

